Blood treatment apparatus with alarm device

Abstract

A blood treatment apparatus includes a controller and a supervisor, which together monitor various sensors. The controller is equipped with a first alarm system and the supervisor is equipped with a second alarm system. To avoid competition between both alarm systems, the alarm system of the supervisor normally remains mute. A function monitoring device monitors the function of the first alarm system and signals a missing alarm to the supervisor. Only in this case will the second alarm system of the supervisor be activated.

1. A blood treatment apparatus comprising:
 a blood circulator; 
 a dialysate circulator; 
 sensors for monitoring parameters; 
 actors programmed to effect changes in the circulators; 
 a controller programmed to detect alarm conditions for monitoring signals supplied from the sensors and for controlling the actors, each of the alarm conditions associated with a respective one of two or more different alarm stages; 
 a first alarm system controlled by the controller; 
 a supervisor programmed to detect alarm conditions for monitoring the controller; 
 a second alarm system controlled by the supervisor; and 
 a function monitoring device coupled to the controller and to the supervisor, 
 wherein, upon detection of an alarm condition by the supervisor, the supervisor is programmed to activate the first alarm system if the controller does not detect the alarm condition, is programmed to activate the second alarm system if the first alarm system fails to operate, is programmed to activate the second alarm system if the first alarm system actively presents an incorrect alarm stage not associated with the alarm condition, and is programmed to not activate the second alarm system if the first alarm system operates correctly based at least in part on an input from the function monitoring device. 
 
   
   
     2. The blood treatment apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the alarm condition of the alarm stage having a highest priority is activated if several alarm conditions should be present at the same time. 
   
   
     3. The blood treatment apparatus of  claim 1 , further comprising an alarm table in each of the controller and the supervisor, respectively, wherein each alarm table includes the alarm conditions detected by the sensors of the controller or the supervisor, respectively. 
   
   
     4. The blood treatment apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the alarm stages have sounds differing in frequency and/or tonal rhythm. 
   
   
     5. The blood treatment apparatus of  claim 1 , further comprising an alarm acknowledgement key, wherein operation of the alarm acknowledgement key halts the alarm for predetermined period of time. 
   
   
     6. The blood treatment apparatus of  claim 3 , wherein the alarm is issued depending on the alarm conditions contained in the alarm table. 
   
   
     7. The blood treatment apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the sensors are sampled in fixed time intervals. 
   
   
     8. The blood treatment apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the supervisor is programmed to activate the second alarm system if the first alarm system actively presents the incorrect alarm stage such that the second alarm system actively presents a correct alarm stage.